1949 Cadillac Coupe De Ville

The Crème de la Créme of American cars in 1949, only 2150 cars were ever produced of which only a handful have survived till today. The rarity is indicated by the fact that almost four times as many Cadillac convertibles of the same price were produced that year. The car has electro-hydraulic side windows and front bench seat, leather interior, 4-speed Hydra-Matic automatic transmission, cabin heaters under the front seat, a radio and a clock -and yes, this was top-of-the-line equipment at the time.

In November 1949, the millionth Cadillac was produced at the Detroit plant, and it was a Coupe DeVille like this car.

The 1949 model year was special for Cadillac in many ways: The factory introduced its first mass-produced hardtop (alongside Buick and Olds) and the world's first mass-produced OHV V-8 (alongside Olds). The engine was the most modern and powerful V8 of its time, as evidenced by its great popularity in racing and hot rod circles in the 1950s. 1949 was the last year Cadillac featured a two-piece windshield and offered a 2-door fastback (sedanet). The well-known American car magazine "Motor Trend" chose the car of the year for the first time in 1949, Cadillac received this honor thanks to its new engine.

This particular car was sold new presumably in Las Vegas Nevada and later after millennium found its way to Colorado, where I found it in 2014. It’s a complete restoration project, but one couldn’t find a nicer starting point. As a desert find it needs everything redone, but most importantly, it's structurally completely rust-free and every piece and bit is there. The engine (stuck) and transmission are original and numbers matching. The remnants of the sun-faded original paint are showing, that the car has never been restored before. Only the black top and dashboard are revealing the intentions of the previous owner to put the car back on the road with only minor cosmetic refreshments.

The first 4 pictures show the actual car for sale, the other pictures show what could be achieved if the force will be with you.

The white-wall tyres shown on the picture won’t come with the car, but original fender skirts and sombrero hubcaps are included. The car rolls now on 1970’s steel wheels. The car is located in Finland and the custom-clearance into the EU has been done.